Frequently Asked Questions

All of our products are received as .exe files. An .exe file is an installation file, which includes a "wizard" that offers you the opportunity to choose from a list of 7 embroidery formats, then automatically installs the individual designs on your computer in the appropriate format.

You do not need special software like Winzip or PK Zip to install these files. Use My Computer or Windows Explorer to find the location on your computer where you stored the downloaded file. All of our downloaded products have 5 digit numbers as filenames.

Double click on the file icon with your left mouse button. The installation "wizard" will appear on your computer screen - just follow the on-screen instructions. (click for a detailed description of the installation procedure, which can also be downloaded as a .pdf file and printed for reference)

(Note: we do not recommend downloading your purchase to a diskette. A 3.5" diskette holds only 1.44 megabytes of information. The installation .exe files cannot be split across multiple diskettes.).

ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE NOTE: There is at least one anti-virus software provider - Computer Associates - whose software changes the filename extension from .exe to .efw. If this happens to you, the .exe file can be restored to original functionality by changing the file extension back to .exe. You can also disable this anti-virus scan feature. Consult your anti-virus technical support department for more details.

Feedback or Questions about "Installing Files" (5)

What about downloading to a MAC? This is what I use to get designs from my computer to my Pfaff7570. I don't get any response when I try to download.

EmbroideryArts Support answers:

Although you can download files to your MAC - control-click, then "Save Link As" we assume from your message that you aren't asking about downloading the file, but about installing the designs after the installation file has been downloaded.

All of our installation files come to you as .exe files, which include a built-in installation wizard. Some of our customers have told us that they can install our designs on the newest MACs, which run Windows operating systems and can deal with Windows .exe files. Others have reported that they have had some luck with Windows emulation programs.

95% of the computerized embroidery industry is PC-based. Many MAC owners have reported that in order to avoid the continuous frustration that they encounter with embroidery software programs they have purchased inexpensive PCs and use them only for embroidery-related tasks.

i have just brought a Brother pe 150. can i use my computers built in card reader/writer to read and write my memory cards instead of using these dedicated card reader/writer.

2. could i use memory cards brought from a computer shop or are these cards special

EmbroideryArts Support answers:

Devices like the Magic Box, Ultimate Box, etc. and software programs like PE Design that include a reader/writer box and computer software interface will guarantee the compatability of the software, reader/writer box, and memory card. They will also guarantee that the memory card is compatible with your embroidery machine.

We don't know about the compatability of generic flash memory cards and your embroidery machine, so couldn't recommend that you use one, since it might void your machine's waranty. To be sure, we would recommend that you discuss this with the dealer who sold you the machine.

I have a Janome 300E which uses .jef format. Can I convert from one of the offered formats using my Digitizer 10000 computer software? If so, is it then possible to add the new monogram letters to my available fonts on the software or will they need to be imported individually into the design?

EmbroideryArts Support answers:

Using your Janome sopftware you can convert the Janome .sew format to .jef.

Our designs aren't keyboard fonts - they are individual designs for each letter of the alphabet. If you wish to combine several letters together you use you software to import and merge the individual designs together.

I have a Brother Embroidery System PE 200. What, if any, software would I need to transfer an Embroidery Arts design set from my PC to my embroidery machine?

Are your designs compatible with Corel DRAWings?

Thank you for you help.

Debby Green

EmbroideryArts Support replies:

Brother Machines use .pes format, which is one of our 7 basic format choices. All of our products come to you as installation (.exe) files. They include an installation wizard that prompts you to choose from a list of formats.

You can also choose the location for installation of the designs on your computer, and can opt to have the designs installed directly to a blank diskette if your machine has a 3.5" floppy disk drive.

If your machine uses a small memory card, then you will need software and a reader/writer box to transfer designs from your computer to a blank memory card. This device is part of programs like PE Design, but can also be purchased as a stand-alone product: Magic Box, Amazing Box, Ultimate Box, etc.

The stand-alone versions will allow you to transfer individual designs to the machine. If you intend to use our products to sew out single letter monograms in their original size then you won't need anything else. If you want to create two and three letter monograms (called "merging" designs) or resize the designs you will need software to accomplish these tasks. These features are included in a product like PE Design (other machine manufacturers have similar products) but they can also be done with stand-alone embroidery software programs like Embird, Buzz Size, Melco Sizer, etc.

Corel DRAWings is a software program that autodigitizes from simple Truetype computer fonts. Our designs are individually digitized from historic artwork.